Watch This Before You Buy A Shinola Watch!

RANT&H | APR 17, 2019

In today’s episode, Christian is joined by Jon Shanahan of The Kavalier to review and analyze the Shinola Lake Superior Automatic and Runwell Sport Chronograph. Shinola is a brand that has very much committed their entire marketing strategy and brand message to being Made in the USA, specifically in Detroit, and while there has certainly been some controversy surrounding that, it’s Jon’s experience learning very specifically about American Made companies that will, hopefully, lend some perspective here.

First, we have the Runwell Chronograph, priced at $1,125. The blacked out case and roe gold bezel are certainly subjective as a design, but what is pretty objective is the general tinny, hollow feeling of the Runwell’s bracelet and bezel action. The chronograph function, as well, felt very jittery, and seemed to move very much at its own pace during the reset. Speaking of the reset, the version we reviewed came misaligned which, though not entirely unheard of in more affordable watches, is really unacceptable at the $1k+ price point.

Then we have the Lake Superior Automatic, priced at $1,450 running the SW200 automatic movement. We have the “Gift Set” version, which should in theory have pretty impressive packaging, but it ultimately doesn’t offer much that can’t also be found in watches coming in at considerably less. The design, too, suffers the fate of so many dive watches in that it’s more or less a Rolex Submariner with a couple of aesthetic changes which, though arguably the theme of a divers watch anyway, is still kind of depressing at almost $1,500.